Forever 23
by paintitblue
Summary: The flea's up to his antics once again after eight years of absence in Ikebukuro, and Shizuo Heiwajima's presence. Now a family of three, Shizuo intends to unravel what trouble Izaya Orihara has been weaving. However, he has no idea how big of a web he's stuck in. Just how long can Shizuo keep up with the information broker's plans? He wasn't forever 24 after all. Rating to go up.
1. Chapter 1

He shuffled out of his shoes and into his house slippers. He loosened his bowtie, and the stress levels in his mental health lowered a bit. He hated the fact that desperate schmucks always have to run away from the debt collector. They could have just calmly said they didn't have money and he would have beaten their ass with equal calmness.

"I'm home!" he yelled, but his voice was drowned by the clattering in the kitchen. No evidence of food could be traced in the air. He sighed. Yet again, Shizuo Heiwajima was late for dinner. As much as he wanted to spend his meals with his family, his job of chasing dirt bags down didn't let him.

He leaned against the doorframe of the kitchen, where his wife washed the dishes of her and Haruo's dinner. Her back was to him.

"Dinner's in the microwave," Mizuki muttered. It was still nice of her to let him just press a button to eat dinner. Guilt, such a familiar feeling it felt like family, crept up in his throat. He didn't like the fact that Mizuki had to stay up late just for her to catch him eat dinner, neither did he like spending only the morning with his family.

"Sorry, I'm late…again," he said, muffled with bashfulness. "These guys just-"

She turned her head with a smile on her face. "It's part of the job, right? No apologies."

Damn, has five years aged her. She still had the luster in her long brown hair, the gleam in her wide chocolate brown eyes, and the power to wash Shizuo in warmth with just one smile. Yet, the four year old son and his excuses have creased the edges of her eyes and overuse that smile. He remembered the first time he met her, she was so straight-forward and honest about everything, it seemed like she wasn't real.

He didn't even bother to resist the urge to kiss her. Sometimes, he wished it were that simple again; to kiss her without any worries in the world, and hold her like she wouldn't be going anywhere else. She put her soapy and wet hands on his chest and pushed away gently. There were at least two shades of red painted on her face, and an amused smile on her lips.

"What was that for?"

He grinned, "Do I need a reason to kiss my wife?"

"Well, next time, take a breath mint or five before you do," she giggled.

He turned pink with embarrassment. "Sorry. Um… so, what's for dinner?"

"Vegetab-"

"DADDY!"

A little boy in fire truck printed pajamas came running down the hallway. He turned right to enter the kitchen and jumped to hug his father. Shizuo caught the boy in his arms, only falling a few inches backwards. He held the boy up in the air, his brown hair messy, the same chocolate eyes of his mother gleaming, and high-pitched giggles.

"Haruo! What are you doing up so late? Huh? Stay up this late and Daddy will have to toss you out of the window!" and Shizuo mock-swung his son near the window and Haruo squealed with fear and excitement.

"Alright!" Mizuki clapped her soapy hands, sending foam on the table, "Haruo come with me, I'll tuck you to bed. Let Daddy eat, okay?"

* * *

He patted his belly after a satisfying bowl of sweet vegetable stew. Mizuki wasn't able to cook a single damn thing before they got engaged. Their dates were comprised of sushi at Simon's and Dennis', take-out anything, and the occasional ramen. When he popped the question, she hopped to the nearest bookstore and purchased a life-time supply of cookbooks. She vowed to be a good wife or die trying.

Her microwave sure did.

"Shizuo!" she scolded him with a smack on the head.

He pressed "STOP" on his thoughts.

"What did I tell you about smoking in the house?" Five minutes ago, she played the understanding wife card, but now she played the "I hate your vices, get out" card, and she played it well. Her eyes were smoldering embers, ready to take the skillet out of the cupboard if her hand and demands didn't work. That happened once and he had no intention of repeating it. She didn't like him poisoning Haruo's lungs, or hers for that matter.

He stubbed the cigarette on the plate, and pleaded with his eyes at Mizuki to not take out the frying pan, "Sorry. Force of habit."

Her eyes cooled down, but just a little. She pointed at the door, "Take it outside."

He stood up, stepped in his shoes, and shuffled out of the house. And a good wife she made.

* * *

The cigarette lay in his lips and he breathed in the good smoke.

There was a good spring breeze in the residential area. It was the typical Japanese housing lot, tall walls that guarded two story houses. It was the same neighborhood that he and Kasuka grew up in. The only noise you would hear were children playing games, old ladies crying out at the children, and the occasional mess the delivery boy made on the way. He and Mizuki figured that a cramped apartment in the city of underground gangs wasn't the best place to bring up a son. Man, Tom's face was priceless when he said he was moving out, a mixture of loss and pure joy.

"Then again, the apartment wouldn't smell of tobacco anymore!" he joked.

They weren't too far from the city though. Shizuo could never stay away from Ikebukuro. His job was just a train ride away. In fact, from where he stood, he could still see the city's skyline, just a tiny bit. If he squinted, he could make out one of the skyscrapers.

He inhaled the smoke and puffed it out.

This was what he considered _the _life. No more gangs to pounce on his ass since they all probably got bored of him. He had a family and a peaceful home here. No one was going to blow up his house or anything. He had a stable job as Tom's partner in his company which grew into something that was more than two guys roaming around the streets collecting money people owe. No more-

Then, the hairs on his neck and arms stood up. Something in the air wasn't right. He scanned the area to see most of the widows darkened. His heart beat increased. The feeling was familiar to him, like he was trying to find the right word for something and it was at the tip of his tongue.

He clenched his fist and locked his jaw. He hated this feeling. It was the feeling of being watched. He threw his cigarette on the ground and stubbed it out.

"ALRIGHT! WHO'S OUT THERE?" he roared at the empty roads of the night. The sound of crickets was its reply.

He knew someone was out there. He hasn't felt this feeling in years, which meant it could only be-

_SLASH_

A dark figure darted across him, leaving a long gash in his dress shirt. He hasn't been cut in that area for years as well.

The slasher was going for another strike, but Shizuo raised his leg, ready to bring hell down on him… and missed.

"My, my, Shizu-chan, you've lost your touch!" the figure mocked at him.

An animalistic noise came from the depths of his hate. He didn't want to believe who that person just was. _God damn it_, the stupid flea leaves his life alone for eight goddamn years and he couldn't just make it ten.

_CUT_

His opponent slashed at his back. Shirt, skin, flesh, cut open.

"It's going to take a lot more than cuts to put me down!" he shouted.

"Ooooh, I'm shaking, old-man Shizu-chan!" he retorted. Shizuo hated that nickname. Hate hate hate hate hate hate. Kill kill kill kill kill.

He couldn't keep it in any longer. He never knew he'd utter that name once again, and he wished he wouldn't have to until he got to his grave.

"IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIZAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

It felt like sandpaper on his tongue.

He grabbed his neighbor's mailbox and took a swing at the incoming figure, and hit empty air.

"You missed me, Shizu-chan!" Izaya Orihara grinned as he was perched on top of a wall. "Though, I can't say the same for me." He went in for another cut.

But Shizuo caught his hand before it could slash at him again. He slammed his hand against a wall, and Izaya's body followed suit. His blade, the very same one, dropped to the ground.

"Who said I missed you, flea?" he muttered, almost laughing.

Shizuo got a good look at his past enemy, and resisted the urge to slam his face on the ground repeatedly. Izaya Orihara hasn't aged a day. He had the same choppy haircut, same smooth face, same flawless slender hands, and the same irritating grin. It was like staring into his past through a magic mirror.

"You _have _grown old, Shizu-chan. The haircut makes you look 10 years older than what you really are. And what happened to those tacky shades?" and he rambled on like they were old college buddies at a reunion.

What? He couldn't keep his hair shaggy forever, so he got it cut and slicked it back.

"I have to say, you've made quite a life for yourself. Wife, son, home, and same shitty job. But, still, oh so very booooooooring! I think I can puke from this mediocrity!" he dramatized and laid his free hand on his forehead.

Shizuo made a sound in the middle of a growl and a roar. He slammed his fist, aimed for Izaya's head, but made a crater in the wall instead. Damn it, he had to pay for that later. Izaya moved his body to the right, to where his hand was captured.

"What do you care about my life anyway?! Why in hell have you dragged your smarmy ass back here?"

"I do deserve some vacation time."

"Yeah, back in hell, where you belong."

"Like I said, I just miss the filthy Ikebukurean air!" He made these eyes that were supposed to resemble puppy dogs' eyes.

"I don't live in Ikebukuro, leech. Your real reason?"

Izaya tsked. "It's not fun playing with a sharper Shizu-chan. If you must know, I'm on a job, which just happened to be near Ikebukuro so I also decided to keep my tabs on you guys. I have to say, you surprised me the most, Shizu-chan!

Who would have expected you to find someone to love that piece of trash called _you._"

With his free hand, Izaya grabbed Shizuo's arm and threw him to the left.

"But, you're not as sharp as you used to be!" he grinned. "Well, I'm going to have my fun for the next weeks to come. See you later..." and he jumped to a roof.

"… Shizu-chan."

And the next roof, and the next, and the next, and the next.

As Shizuo lay on the ground, he replayed what the hell just happened. He had a good eight Izaya-free years and now the worm from hell crawled back.

And what he considers fun, was ruining his life as well as other's.

His life now, included two other people.

He needed to see Shinra as fast as possible, about Izaya and he was losing a good amount of blood.


	2. Chapter 2

Shinra was typing away on his laptop. He was searching on this American site called Amazon for some Western movies he could buy for Celty. She seemed to enjoy the sci-fi ones very much and he decided to just give her a gift, right out of nowhere. He didn't need a reason to give a gift to his wife now did he? He sighed dreamily. _Wife. _Six years of unofficial marriage and it feels, well, quite not different from being roommates. The responsibility of restocking the refrigerator with milk still goes to the last one who finished it and they still both split the bills. He guessed the biggest difference was that they shared a bedroom now, Celty's old bedroom being a storage room, and being more public with her affections. She even held his hand yesterday in front of passing bystanders at the park!

Cowboys vs. Aliens… could Americans be ever more blunt with their movie titles? He was about to click buy when suddenly he heard loud footsteps outside. He knew only two people that could make such audible footsteps and he decided to go with Shizuo Heiwajima.

"I'll get it Celty!" Shinra cried out to her, who was in the living room, reading something. He got up from his chair and made his way to open the door for Shizuo, but the door removed itself from its hinges. Shizuo was heaving it above his head. His eyes had the gleam of death in them and his breath was ragged, like a bull about to charge. There was also the large gash across his chest and blood dripping to the floor. And he just washed that carpet!

"Aww, come on! We just bought that door!" Shinra cried, missing the mood of the situation by a hundred feet away.

Celty instantly got up, her fingers flying across her keypad. She then showed it to Shizuo.

_Calm down, Shizuo! You're bleeding all over the carpet! Deep breaths, remember? One to ten?_

But all the couple got from the beast was, "I'M GOING TO SOOO KILL HIM! KILL KILL KILL KILL KILL!" with their newly replaced door over his head. "Did you know about this Shinra!? DID YOU?"

But the doctor wasn't giving much to Shizuo's death threats because he was trying to remember something Shizuo's little brother told him to do whenever Shizuo was like this. If only he could remember what it was! It was a drink, that was what he knew. Was it a martini? No, Shizuo expressed how much he hated a lot of alcoholic drinks after his bartender stage. Was it water? Water, seriously? Maybe it was…

He heard the refrigerator click to an open, but Celty was already holding a milk bottle up in front of Shizuo's face. His shoulders slumped, his face contorted back to normal, and he "gently" laid the door outside.

On Celty's phone it said, _Thirty-three years old and it still works on him._

Shinra chuckled, although quite nervous with Shizuo scolding him about laughing at this silly calming method. Honestly, milk! Who would have guessed? Shinra wrapped his arms around his beloved Celty and chimed, "Oh, Celty! You're so smart! How did you know it was milk?"

Celty held up her phone, _This isn't the time for that Shinra. _She gave the bottle to Shizuo, who accepted it without any hesitation. He chugged it down with one gulp, wiped his milk mustache, and chucked the bottle outside. Littering was a crime! How dare he!

"So… Shizuo, who did you want to kill?" Shinra squeaked. He had a pretty good guess on who it was and he knew that the direction of this conversation could send him all beaten up on the floor.

"The flea," he growled. He was always growling when he was mad. "He's back."

If Celty had eyes, she would be blinking in confusion. She typed in her phone, _What do you mean?_

"I mean he's back. He did this-" Shizuo angrily pointed at his bleeding torso.

"Oh, right, we should probably fix that!" Shinra interrupted. He ushered Shizuo into the study. "Celty, be a darling and get me the antiseptic!"

* * *

Shinra nervously tapped his fingers on the table, like he was playing the Flight of the Bumblebee minus the piano. They just finished Shizuo's stitching and gave him a new shirt. Celty and Shizuo had their gaze deeply buried onto Shinra, waiting for his explanation on Izaya. If they didn't stare so, it would uplift the tension in the air and Shinra wouldn't have to fumble with his words!

He actually knew this was going to happen ever since he saw Izaya idly walking around the streets of Ikebukuro one day. He approached him and greeted him with his usual pleasant demeanor despite fucking up the lives of anyone who was in a 9000 meter radius of him and the fact that his, Celty's, Shizuo's lives improved ten-fold with him out of the picture. Actually, he was kind of hurt that the informant didn't even bother to say he was coming back to Ikebukuro! All those years in junior high and high school… all those times he was with him and Shizuo, snapping at each other's necks… all down the drain with this insult!

Izaya told him that he was working for some big-shot conglomerate in Tokyo now. And he decided to take a break for the hustle and bustle there and trade it for the more homey hustle and bustle here. He might as well "check-up" on his friends in the city as well, since he has been gone for 8 years.

"No matter how long I've been gone, this city hasn't changed. It wrings out the old and brings in the new, like a tree shedding its leaves and growing new ones, and never breaks this cycle. Which is why it _never_ changes. I mean, look at you Shinra, you lost your spikes in your hair!"

Celty told him to get the haircut since he still looked like he was in high school. And that he never changed it for twenty years. It was better than saying he looked like a woman with it!

He didn't bother to tell Shizuo about this because first of all, Shizuo didn't live in Ikebukuro, but rather in those residential wards near Toshima, and second, the guy said he was on vacation. Izaya may be a heartless codfish but he was still on some level friends with Shinra, so he trusted him. Although he should have expected him to drop by Shizuo's and partake of his favorite pastime: irking the strongest man in Ikebukuro.

And now that he told Shizuo about this, he waited for a full blown tantrum: his stitches busting open, and possible broken limbs, that were Shinra's.

But a minute in after hearing Shinra's side, Shizuo rested his chin on his interlaced fingers with the most serious face in the history of serious faces. He was going to burn a hole in the wall if he kept up his glare. Then he would have to pay for the door and the hole in the wall. Shinra wondered if duct-tape stretched its limits to blocking drafts.

Then, Shizuo's face lightened up and he let out a sigh. Lately, Shizuo's freakouts haven't been as common as they were before. He seemed to keep all that anger in his mind now instead of taking it out on his clients. Shinra had no doubt it was Mizuki's doing. The first time she saw Shizuo throw a vending machine at a man on a motorcycle who almost ran them over as they were on their date, she slapped him. Most people would run away whenever he couldn't control the urge to turn into a monster.

"Well then, how are we going to take a crack at this?" Shizuo said.

Shinra looked at Celty, wondering if she knew what Shizuo meant. She took out her phone._Take a crack at what?_

"I don't like the flea being out there in the open, knowing that he's going to start messing up all of our lives in the process. He should know that we've all got more… _responsibilities_ than eight years ago." Shizuo leaned back and stared at the ceiling, avoiding any of their gazes. "I mean, if it's okay with you guys."

Both of them knew it was his family he was talking about. Shinra could only slightly understand what the poor guy was going through. He had Celty as his wife, but that didn't denote much difference as before. Shizuo's got a whole different life now and he wasn't going to stand there as Izaya could possibly tear it apart.

But hey, Shinra wasn't going to stand around to see his friend's life get torn apart. And he has something here too in this apartment with Celty. If Izaya gives information about her head again… all these years of moving on would be destroyed like a tower of Lego.

Shinra held Celty's hand, like he was transmitting all of his thoughts to hers. In sync they nodded. Shizuo's eyes grew wide and grinned.

"Thank you. Now, I'd start with this job he got here and what the hell is that about."

Celty typed and showed her phone to Shizuo.

_We could ask our clients, since we all work in Ikebukuro's underworld. I'm sure one of them has got to know about Izaya._

"Right you are, Celty!" Shinra exclaimed. "But we have to be careful and make sure none of them slips the fact that we're going around asking questions about Izaya to him."

Celty typed something.

_But once we find out, then what? We're not going to kick him out of Ikebukuro now are we?_

That did seem harm. No, not _seem._ That was_harsh_. Ikebukuro was Izaya's home as much as it was theirs. Though, he did treat the city like experimenting grounds along with Shibuya.

Shizuo didn't seem to be taken aback on this. Maybe what was going in his head was, _That damned flea deserves it kill kill kill. _

Then, it was deemed to be his most serious voice, he said, "It all depends on what he's doing here. When we find out, that's when we'll decide how to approach him."

Izaya was right. The city did wring out the old, and what was old was him.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Here's a chapter focusing more on Shizuo's and his wife's relationship! Reviews and I will update! And you can tell I really don't know how to talk to you guys, yeah, it's new...

"You're not much of a talker, are you?" the girl across him stated.

He blushed and looked away from his plate to the floor, the ceiling, anywhere but at the girl. How the hell did he get in this situation, again? Yesterday, the girl suddenly walked up to the table he was sharing with Tom at Russia's sushi and she rashly said she wanted to go out with him because it was a dare and if she got the date, her fucking crazy friends would remodel her apartment or something like that. Now, he has been through some stupid ass stories and excuses from all those shitheads who forget to pay their debts to Tom's company, but this was just plain ridiculous. He didn't say this to the girl, her name was Mizuri… Midori…, damn he forgot her name, but his expression must have said it because she immediately said that he didn't have to.

Maybe it was the sushi, because in his mind was,_ Why the hell not_? He hasn't been on a date for a while and Tom was practically pushing him off this cliff. And after that _certain_ night, he needed to take his mind off of things and throwing traffic signs and spearing cars with them weren't doing the trick. And she wasn't all that bad. Outspoken and brash, but nice, he guessed.

They decided to go to a more upscale restaurant in the nicer part of Ikebukuro. Shizuo actually decided that, since_… Mizuki_! That was her name! … just moved into the city. She surprised him by showing up with make-up and styled hair. He didn't peg her as that type who spent hours perfecting themselves in the mirror. And she must've had mind-reading powers too because she quickly explained that her psycho friends did this to her. He was beginning to question her choice of friends

"Yeah, sorry," he replied. What was there to talk about anyway? There was that forced feeling that kept creeping into the atmosphere, reminding them that they were here _on a dare_.

"Okay, what about work? I work at a call-center agency somewhere around Sunshine. That's the reason why I moved. You do…?"

Maybe she agreed to this dare because she didn't know who he was or his reputation in the city. He didn't get to go on many dates because most people would be shitting their pants when he was a foot away from them. Maybe that was the reason her asshole friends dared her to ask him out because she wouldn't know what she was getting herself into.

"I'm a debt collector. That guy I was with yesterday is kinda my partner. I wouldn't call him my boss, but he runs the company and I supply the muscle." He didn't call Tom his boss, even if he was and he didn't call himself a bodyguard either. He helped collect the money as much as Tom did, but he never did correct Tom when he said that Shizuo was his bodyguard.

She smiled. There was something about that smile that bothered him. No, it caught him off guard. People don't smile at him. People get terrified by him. "So you chase down those who are in debt, like a bounty hunter."

He chuckled, "Now that you say it like that, bounty hunter sounds way cooler than a debt collector. I chase down those shitheads who just are stupid enough not to pay their debts. God, their excuses just piss me off because they're so pitiful. This one guy spent all his damn money on one girl he met at a bathhouse, a fucking bathhouse, and he didn't even have her cellphone number, that prick. What kind of-"

"Shizuo?"

"What?!"

"You broke your chopsticks. Scratch that, you turned them into saw dust."

* * *

Both of them stood outside her apartment building. She wasn't kidding when she desperately needed a remodeling of her place. From the outside, the two story building looked like someone just crapped out the design. The concrete walls had moss growing on the top, bird shit, and graffiti from some old color gangs. The windows had screens that were probably attacked by birds with their beaks. The gutter on the roof was broken and dirty water, more like sludge, flowed out.

Mizuki still had a smile on her face, but it was more of a substitute for saying _Sorry, my place is shit. Don't judge me._

"Well! I'd say this night went… unexpected," she said rather too cheerfully. It must have been horrible for her. She had to go through Shizuo almost losing his temper with the waiter who took 15 minutes processing their bill, meaning he created a hand mark on their table. When they were walking back here, they encountered a couple fighting over overly shallow reasons, to which he bent the lamp post, just nearly hitting the guy's head. And the chopstick incident as well. He was actually controlling his temper the whole time, and damn it took some effort, but hey, compared to him before the Saika incident and when Izaya was still around the area, he was a freaking lamb.

"You're probably thinking the date went bad," he blurted out.

The smile disappeared and was replaced with confusion. "I just said it was unexpected. Did you think it was horrible?"

She was pulling the oblivious act. This was when the woman would say everything went fine, as if she didn't notice him destroying public property for the whole night, but she'd say she had a wonderful night, say goodbye with the same cheerful tone, and once she gets into her apartment, and no longer hears his footsteps, she'd dial on emergency her friend's number and rant on how the whole date went terribly wrong. Who would say they had a good time after all of that?

"Shizuo, I-"

Suddenly, her body hit the wall with a loud_ SMACK _and she yelped in pain. The logical thing to do first was to rush to her side, but instead Shizuo's head followed the man that pushed Mizuki to the wall like a ragdoll. He looked like one of those low-lives that steal off of other people to pay for his drugs or something like that. He was on the run but Shizuo caught his arm and threw him to the ground. He towered over the grubby bastard with the face of death itself.

"What do you think you're doing pushing people on the street?" Shizuo growled.

The man indeed was afraid of the other who stood above him, but his arrogance overpowered that fear. "Whatever, man! I don't have time for weirdos like- _chhhhh!"_

Shizuo's hand grasped around the man's neck and just like the toy, his eyes were bulging out of their sockets. "Did you just call me a weirdo? _DID YOU?!"_

The man opened his mouth for an apology but how could he if he had Ikebukuro's strongest man strangling him.

"And you have the balls to even answer like that after pushing that woman to the wall. Who do you think you are, bastard?" He tightened his grip when...

"SHIZUO!" Mizuki yelled. She was standing on her two feet, as if nothing had happened, with her hands on her hips, and Jesus, she didn't look happy. "You put that man down right now!"

"But he pushed you!"

"And I'm fine!"

"But he pisses me off!"

Mizuki increased her glare and walked up to Shizuo, "And this is how you handle your anger? By attempting to him?"

"What else am I going to take my anger on?" he retorted.

Immediately, she dragged him away, causing him to drop the man to the ground, and pulled him inside her apartment. She had some trouble with her keys but that did not stagger her down. That woman was on a roll. She left him in the middle of her apartment to get something, came out with a pillow, and thrust it at him.

A freaking pillow.

"What's this?" he demanded, with just a bit of growl.

"A pillow, what else? You're supposed to hug it."

"You do know I'm going to break this-"

"_Just do it._"

He couldn't believe this. He was taking orders from this chic he barely knew to hug the hell out of this pillow. And that chic right now was watching him intently, like she was cheering him on with her eyes going, _You can do this. You can hug the pillow. _

He sighed. There went his _Why not? _thought. It was just hugging a pillow and if he did destroy it, it wasn't his fault and Mizuki was going to buy herself another pillow. His hands closed around the pillow and took it from her. He wrapped his arms around it. He remembered what happened five seconds ago, with that grimy bastard, then the chopsticks, the waiter, the couple, and with every thought his hug grew tighter. Amazingly, the pillow stayed intact.

"How the-"

"I make sure that I get the best sleep I could since that's the only thing I intend to do in this shithole, whoops mind my manners. Anyway, that thing's tested by bulldozers for its efficiency," she frankly said. "There you go, another way to handle your anger."

He chuckled, "Seriously, hugging a pillow?"

"You can borrow it, if you'd like. Just return it to me the next time we see each other."

Did he hear that right? There was a next time?

"You should really see the look on your face. You look like _you've_ been hit by a lamp post."

"You want a next time?"

She smiled. What was with her with the smiling? Not that there was anything wrong with the smile. It was a nice smile. "I fully intend to. This date just seems too… forced. I couldn't talk to you without thinking, 'This was a dare, remember, this was a dare.' You might not know it, but you're a nice guy, Shizuo, just one with anger management issues."

He couldn't say anything. Honestly, he didn't want to. What she just said should stay uninterrupted and unflawed.

"So, again, this night did go unexpected. But I had a great time."

* * *

Shizuo was trying to balance everything at once, drinking his coffee, tying his tie, and reading the newspaper. Mizuki noticed this wasn't working at all. He spilled coffee on the article he was reading and got his fingers all tied in one big mess. She sighed and stood up to help him. Sometimes, she wondered where this man would be without her.

The memory of the past Shizuo nipped at the back of her mind. She wrinkled her nose and ignored it. She grabbed the coffee cup, put it down, and worked on his tie.

Then Haruo entered the kitchen, dressed in his pre-school uniform. He looked absolutely adorable with his blue hat that was a tad too big fohis head, thus falling over his eyes. Mizuki wanted to just run to him and squeeze those cheeks until they turn sore, but she digressed.

He laughed at his father when he caught sight of him. "Daddy, you can't tie your tie!"

Mizuki smirked, "That's because Daddy's in a real hurry, isn't he?"

Shizuo stared at her, probably wondering how she knew, and she stared back at him, as if to tell him it was obvious.

He smiled softly, "Yeah, the company's got a new job for me to do and I'm pretty excited about it."

"Oh?" She overlapped the ends of the tie… or was it supposed to be other way?

"Com-pa-nee?" Haruo pronounced.

"That's right, Haruo!" Shizuo clapped. "That's where Daddy works."

Haruo's amber eyes grew wide, "Where Daddy works? I want to go too!"

His father chuckled and Mizuki would have too, if it weren't for this damn tie. Did it go under or around?

"No, no, it's not a place for little boys," Shizuo said.

"But I'm not little!" Haruo stomped. "I'm big and strong, just like Daddy. I can carry a table!"

Oh, the minds of four year olds. Haruo having Shizuo's strength would have been a nightmare. Just imagine, toys impaling themselves into the walls, craters on the floors, broken plates, and bent utensils.

"I give up on this damn tie," Mizuki muttered. She heard Shizuo chuckle and felt his chest bounce with it. Honestly, she loved that chuckle.

"Yeah, I guess I'll just go with a clip-on. Tom's got a spare," Shizuo replied and gulped his coffee down.

"Hey! Didn't you hear me?!" Haruo yelled. She loved her dear baby, but he sure could complain. The pitch in his voice whenever he yells stings your eardrums. "I said I can carry a table now! And if I can't go to Daddy's place, then he has to go with me, ree-mem-ber?"

"What are you talking about, Haruo?" she asked as she went back to breakfast.

"Career Day!"

Oh, shit.

She stopped dead in her tracks and her eyes lingered to meet Shizuo's, whose expression was not far from hers. Have they forgotten Career Day? The paper said it was on next week! She checked the refrigerator's door, where the calendar was stuck to, and traced her finger to that day.

"Haruo, dear," she smiled sweetly at her son. "Why don't you eat the chocolate in the fridge? Mommy and Daddy just have to talk about something!"

The little boy's eyes lit up with pure utter joy. "Choco-choco-chocolaaaaaate!" and flew to the fridge. Mizuki grabbed Shizuo to the living room.

"Alright, I did the last one, so it's your turn," she frankly said.

"What? I can't! Like I said, the company's-"

"Bring him to work! Tom would understand, wouldn't he?"

Shizuo glared at her, like she went insane, "You want me to bring our four year old son to the darkest streets of Ikebukuro?"

"I am not going back there without you suffering the same thing. You know what happened!"

Believe it or not, toddlers would judge everything, and she meant _everything,_ you did as a store manager. She worked a small bakeshop as its manager and every kid wanted something from there, since Haruo started bragging about how good their chocolate cakes were. Eventually she got the whole class crying, calling her mean, and _hungry_, do you know how irritated kids become when they're hungry, from stating what she did for a living. Now that they're older, who knew what the hell those little devils were going to interrogate her with now.

"At least they aren't going to demand you for food," she muttered but Shizuo didn't find that funny at all. His glare increased. "Can't you skip those parts of the city?" she urged. But Shizuo was going to open his mouth to argue, and she knew that his tone was going to be harsher with every reply.

"Rock, paper, scissors," she proposed.

He blinked in disbelief but surrendered. Once… twice… thrice… they pounded their fists on their hands and then threw their attack.

Shizuo's hand was scissors.

Mizuki's hand was rock.

She smiled triumphantly. Shizuo held is head in his hands and groaned in despair. As a consolation, and maybe out of the feeling of joy, she pecked Shizuo's cheek.

"I'm sure Tom would understand. And, don't wreck the classrooms, okay?"


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: I apologize for not updating for two weeks. The first week, there was no internet and I hate my service for that. An entire week of no internet and I survived. Then the next week, I was busy with life outside the computer. But here you go chapter 4 of Forever 23! Please do review and I will continue updating. Hell, I'll continue updating till this thing is finished.

* * *

"Uh… I'm Mr. Heiwajima, Haruo's father, and I'm a debt-collector."

The eyes in the room either showed fear or confusion, except Haruo who stared adoringly and expectantly at his father. Parents quickly held their children a little closer to them. Of course, they heard of him before. They worked in Ikebukuro. They all must have seen him throw a vending machine or two in their lifetime. Right now, they were expecting him to burst into rage and wreck the classroom for some petty reason. Like some monster.

_Shizu-chan's such a monster._

Damn it. Of all the times to think of the flea, it was now. He needed to focus on the children and not whooping Izaya's ass. Children. Haruo. Proving Mizuki wrong that he wasn't going to get pissed and wreck the classrooms.

Children stared at Shizuo wondering what the hell was a debt collector. How does one even begin to explain what a debt collector is to four year olds? Mizuki's job was much easier to explain. _I work in a store where you sell food! _Him? _I walk around with my partner and beat the living shit out of guys who don't want to pay their debt. Oh, and a debt when you owe money to someone. Oh, and owe means…_

Shit.

The words started to vaguely form in his mind, like reading inked letters when wet. "What I do is… I… go to people who owe the company I work in money and ask it from them," he started.

Then a girl raised her hand. She looked like one of those kids who were too smart for their age, with the way her hands were clasped in front of her, how straight her hand was when it shot in the air, and she wore pigtails. All smart girls wear their hair up, as if amount of pressure made by tying it would increase brain power. "So you steal money?" she asked.

"No!" he exclaimed. How was he going to put this? "See, the people owe money the company money. Owe means… when you borrow money from someone!" Thank God, he got that right.

Another kid raised their hand, "Why do the people need the money?"

"It's because they don't have any to start with." He looked across the room for questions. "Any more questions?"

Haruo's hand shot up. "Daddy, show them how you get those bad guys!"

He gulped. Children started whispering. _Bad guys? Is he a superhero? _Damn it, he couldn't start throwing things outside of the classroom, with their goddamn parents in here! Their eyes darted from one another, knowing how Shizuo takes down "bad guys", and that alarmed them. They failed to silence their children and some glared at Haruo for even bringing up the topic.

That hit something. It wasn't Haruo's fault for asking the question; he was only four years old! And right now, he was expecting his father to do something to impress his classmates, and what kind of father would he be if he let him down. Maybe he could…

"Alright, Haruo," he smiled, "hold on tight. I'll show you."

Haruo gripped his table with all his might. With one hand Shizuo lifted the table with Haruo over his head effortlessly, who shouted with joy, and showed a smile. Haruo could already touch the ceiling with his hand. This reminded him of the time he worked as an extra on the set of Power Rangers. "Some people don't give back the money they borrowed, and that's what you call stealing. And stealing is bad, kids."

The kids gasped and started to cheer for Shizuo. One of them yelled out, "YEAH YOU BEAT THE BAD GUYS HARUO'S DAD!" The parents looked uneasy at the insinuation of violence but kept quiet. Hey, it made their kids happy.

"I'm next! I want to go! Carry me!" the kids screamed for Shizuo to carry their tables and he gladly did, all at the same time. He had two tables on each arm and Haruo on his head.

The teacher had been reading some magazine every time the a parent took over, so Shizuo could practically juggle the kids in his arms without her noticing. She put down her magazine and said in a bored tone, "Thank you Mr. Heiwajima, you can put the children down now. Kids, say thank you to Haruo's father."

In a sing-song tone, the class thanked Shizuo and Haruo tackled Shizuo. He had to admit, he hurt his gut just a little when Haruo smashed into him. He grinned like the luckiest man in the world and messed up Haruo's brown hair. He was amazed that he actually pulled this off. To top it off, he pulled it off better than Mizuki did! All the gloating rights waited for him at the end of the day.

A dark figure appeared in his peripheral vision, in the window. His eyes darted to it to see a slender man in a fur parka jacket with raven hair smiling at him like he was the lion and Shizuo was the dinner. Shizuo rushed outside, instead of diving out through the window, which was his first instinct. He didn't know what Izaya was doing in Haruo's school, how he knew this was Haruo's school, or how he knew it was Career Day and that Shizuo would be here. What mattered was that flea should be five hundred feet away from him and especially his family. At least five hundred.

He turned in circles at the courtyard of the pre-school, searching for Izaya Orihara's figure. That damn leech still had that ability to disappear and appear anywhere. Kids on the playground started to stare at the strange man who had the look of death in his eyes and kept turning around in circles in the middle of the area. From the classroom, Haruo pressed his face against the glass with his other classmates wondering what had happened to his father. Those expectant and adoring eyes were just shot down and replaced with utter confusion. Shizuo saw one of Haruo's classmates giggle at him and the rest followed. Haruo made a face, a face that Shizuo recognized as the one he made before a tantrum. He shouted at the class and then pushed the first one who laughed.

The toddler flew across the room and hit the blackboard.

Shizuo was supposed to be here for Haruo. He had to admit, it wasn't the flea's entire fault this time.

* * *

"He wouldn't need to go to detention anymore, Mr. Heiwajima because the incident had been already witnessed by you. I'm assured that you would give him an appropriate punishment at home," the principal stated with a smile that said many things. One of them was, _ If you won't punish him properly, we will. _

Shizuo had his lips pressed together to keep his tongue from lashing out at the principal. Haruo didn't mean to hurt his classmate but what he went to could only be understood by a handful of people only. The principal expected coldness from him but a simple scolding wouldn't cure what Haruo was going through. He was so ashamed for suddenly dropping his son for that damned louse. He was ashamed for passing on this fucking burden to his son.

Before meeting Mizuki, he never entertained the thought of having kids. To him, they were simply gelatinous blobs that ate, cried, and destroyed things. Then, a month after being married, she popped the question on having kids. She didn't dismiss the notion of Haruo inheriting his strength, but she assured Shizuo that they would both give him the help Shizuo never had. His parents weren't much involved with his special ability except for paying for the damage and the hospital bills. Shinra treated the strength like it was a gift from heaven that was to be heavily examined and experimented on. Kasuka treated it like an extra finger on Shizuo's hand, nothing much to worry about.

Still, it was his genes to blame, and now, he was sitting on the other chair but in the same situation from his childhood. There was the principal with little empathy, but much sympathy, the unspoken words from the guilty child and the flimsy defense of the father.

"I would like to apologize, deeply, principal. Haruo didn't show this type of behavior at home or ever, actually. But my wife and I will take care of this at home," Shizuo repeated his father's words.

"Good. Now," the prinicpal turned to Haruo, "Haruo, would you like to say sorry to me and Yu when he comes back to school?"

His son had been staring at anything but Shizuo and the principal, and still refused to look at the principal when he muttered his sorry. The principal retracted with a smile of triumph. They said their goodbye's and thank you's and left room.

In the hall, Shizuo suddenly grasped his son and hugged him. The boy was taken by surprise and it took a while for him to hug back.

"At least your bones aren't broken," Shizuo mumbled.

* * *

Two minutes after the bell, the playground was swarmed with children of the preschool division for recess. The squeaks from the swings, laughter, and shrieks of happiness filled the area with their sound. All the adults stayed in the teacher's lounge for coffee and other treats.

Two girls were on the swing and one of them couldn't swing hard enough for her liking. A boy approached her and offered his help.

"Are you nuts? You broke Yu when you pushed him! I don't want to get broke," and she hopped off the swing and went to the opposite direction of Haruo. If he was a puppy, his ears would flop down and his tail would slink between his legs. He looked to the other girl if she needed his help but she yelped and made a beeline to the monkey bars.

Haruo sighed and took the swing for himself. Everyone was a good five feet away from him.

It was an accident.

Yu Yamazaki was the first to laugh at his father for looking funny when he kept turning in circles outside. Inside, Haruo wanted to laugh with Yu because his dad _did_ look weird. But when everyone else started laughing, started calling him weird, it was like when grandma would hug him too tight. He hated it whenever he felt enclosed or trapped. He hated places where he couldn't take at least five steps in each direction, like elevators. His classmates have trapped him with this feeling called embarrassment. What did he do whenever grandma hugged him too tight? He pushed her away.

Without thinking, his body acted on its own, and he pushed Yu with all his might. Yu went flying across the room and hit the blackboard. He screamed. His eyes were closed and his head leaned on his shoulder.

It was an accident. He said sorry but then everyone started pointing their fingers at him and getting angry. A pretty lady who must have been Yu's mother shrieked at him things he couldn't understand. The teacher yelled at him and pulled him arm to the principal's office. The principal kept smiling at him so he wasn't mad and his father didn't yell at him. Instead, his mouth was a line for the whole time. Was he mad? Haruo couldn't tell but he hugged him in the hallway. That meant everything was fine, right?

Why did his father go outside all of a sudden?

"Hello, there!"

Haruo looked to his side to find a man dressed in black, even his hair was black and his eyes were red, grinning at him on the swing. He was too old to be at a playground and too young to have a kid. "Can you push me?"

Haruo hesitantly got off the swing and said, "You're not afraid of getting broke?"

"Don't worry about it! I'll be fine."

He walked slowly to the man's back. What if he hurt him like he did to Yu? He started off lightly, small gentle pushes.

"You can do better than that!"

Haruo took a hint and pushed him harder. The man exclaimed, "Wee!" and Haruo pushed harder, with a smile growing on his face.

"What's your name, kid?"

"Haruo Heiwajima."

"Sounds like a refrigerator brand," the man said. Haruo giggled at this. "You can call me Naku-chan."

For a while it was Haruo pushing the strange man harder and harder and the man went higher and higher. Then, Haruo pushed too hard and the man fell off the swing.

"I'm sorry!" he yelled but realized the man didn't fall flat on his face but was crouching on top of the swing with the same grin.

"You're really strong , Haru-chan!" he exclaimed then leaped off to stand right in front of Haruo. "You know what? Let's be friends," and he stuck his hand out.

He needed a friend right about now so they shook on it. At least this man wasn't afraid of him and didn't break with his strength.


End file.
